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Research

From infants to veterans to older adults, our community is our passion at UTHealth School of Dentistry, and we commit to their oral and overall health through research every day. The ideas being explored in laboratories today will be the solutions that improve lives tomorrow.

Your support of Many Faces. One Mission. helps us continue setting the standard in oral health research.

Research -SOD

Better oral health leads to better overall health, which is why dental researchers at the School of Dentistry have been pursuing dynamic oral health research since the school’s founding in 1905. This rich history of innovation positions us to continue raising the bar in diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and care through breakthrough discoveries.

With state-of-the-art equipment and resources at their fingertips, our exceptional faculty are expanding the boundaries of science in areas like oral cancer, craniofacial research, and dental public health. Our experts also guide students as they develop their interests and talents in the vibrant world of research.

In addition, the School of Dentistry’s location in the Texas Medical Center provides unparalleled opportunities for collaboration with local, national, and international research partners, bringing the brightest minds in science together to solve the greatest challenges in oral health care.

We are dedicated to improving overall health by improving oral health. Your support of Many Faces. One Mission. can provide the resources to conduct life-changing research that helps our patients receive the treatments they need to return to a life full of smiles.

  • Uncovering the Genetics of Cleft Lip and Cleft Palate

    Using sophisticated genetic technologies, we are striving to identify gene variants that may contribute to craniofacial and dental anomalies like cleft lip and palate.

  • Overcoming Cancer through Research

    Our experts are writing a new narrative for patients with cancer. By harnessing immunotherapy and using injectable biomaterials, we hope to improve the survival rates for patients with oral, head, and neck cancer.

  • Restoring Smiles

    Leading the way in prosthodontics, we are creating new materials and clinical technologies to produce the best implants and prosthetics so patients can return to their lives with broad smiles and a sense of confidence. In addition, when patients lose parts of their faces or mouths to cancer, trauma, or birth defects, the discoveries we make can help with their rehabilitation.

  • Making Dental Care Safer

    We are using big data to improve quality and safety of oral health. We are analyzing patient data and researching ways to improve dental care and increase patients’ safety during their dental appointment.

  • Relieving TMJ Pain

    We are improving treatments for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction. Affecting up to 25% of adults worldwide, TMJ dysfunction is a painful condition that limits jaw movement, making research for more effective treatments vital. We are using bioengineered cartilage to resolve TMJ pain and bring much-needed relief to our patients.